STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - The state should waive borrowing fees next year for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which it needs to repair the devastated system after Hurricane Sandy caused nearly $5 billion in damage, said one board member.

Board Member Allen Cappelli is suggesting that the state waive fees connected to issuing bonds -- a move it did for the agency in January -- this time to cover the initial repair costs the Metropolitan Transportation Authority must fork over to continue the recovery process next year.

"If the state wants to help the MTA, they shouldn't be charging a fee," Cappelli said. "Really what this is, is a tax."

State Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-East Shore/Brooklyn) is backing Cappelli's idea as she did in January.

"In the end this is a cost passed on to the commuters," Ms. Malliotakis said. "It's common sense, and I believe there is support from other legislators."

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is "essentially" a state agency with portions of its budget subsidized by the state, and the fees take away money that could be used to improve operations, Ms. Malliotakis said.

She called the fees "counter productive," and unlike this year's waiver, she hopes that the fees will be dropped permanently.

Budget talks will commence in February and March with legislators, Ms. Malliotakis added.

Cappelli said the agency saved $44 million from the waiver this year related to issuing $5 billion worth of bonds used to refinance old debt at better interest rates.

At the time Cappelli said the savings could be used to restore services, which the agency did when it promised to bring back nearly $30 million in bus and subway services cut in 2009.

Major repairs must be made to the South Ferry Subway Station, the Staten Island Railroad and many other transit hubs.

"There are a lot of significant costs associated with getting these things back into a reliable and safe state," Cappelli said. "If we have to pay $100 million in fees it has to come from somewhere."

Normally "The State Bond Issuing Charge" of .84 percent is applied to any agency loans totaling more than $20 million for fees connected to issuing the debt.

That's $8.40 in charges for issuing every $1,000 in debt, which doesn't sound like much but when billions of dollars are concerned it adds up to millions in fees.

Some of the repair money borrowed will be reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but it could take a while for congress to get around to looking at those claims, Cappelli added.